The present invention relates to shopping carts and the like. More specifically, the invention relates to an improved child seat assembly for such a cart, particularly such a cart employing metal frame components and plastic basket panels.
Wheeled shopping carts comprising metal frame components and generally open latticed plastic basket panels have in great measure replaced their metal wire basket predecessors as the cart type chosen for shoppers' use by retail establishments such as grocery and department stores. Retail establishments and their customers alike generally prefer the former design due to its light weight, low cost, attractiveness, impact resistance, ease of cleaning and maintenance, and elimination of rust and corrosion. Houston Rehrig, one of the present inventors, is largely responsible for bringing about this significant improvement in the industry. Some of his previous inventive cart designs are disclosed in the following U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,999,774; 4,065,142; 4,176,849; 4,273,346; 4,650,199; 4,865,338 and 4,922,639 issued to him.
Of the just mentioned patents, U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,065,142 and 4,176,849 specifically disclose and claim plastic child seats for a cart. These child seats are a significant improvement over prior art child seats employing a metal wire seat frame and a plastic leg opening cover. Therein, a plastic seat panel is hinged about a horizontal wire secured to a seat back. When the seat back is pivoted rearwardly toward the plastic rear gate panel, to collapse the seating compartment, the seat's back edge, which is trapped between slide wires fastened to the rear gate panel, rises allowing the seat back to fold against the rear gate. Hingedly attached to the seat panel is a leg opening cover which, when pivoted to an upright position, covers leg openings provided in the rear gate panel, thereby allowing a user to utilize the seating compartment for storage of small merchandise items. If this leg opening cover is in the upright covering position when the seat back is closed against the rear gate panel, the leg opening cover rises to a position protruding above the top of the cart basket where it is susceptible to damage. Accordingly, in use, the leg opening cover is typically pivoted to a position flat against the seat panel before the seat back is folded against the rear gate panel. As a result, when the seat back is moved forward to open the seating compartment, the leg opening cover remains flat against the seat panel. Even if the leg opening cover is not intentionally pivoted against the seat panel, the leg opening cover can easily inadvertently be caused to fall against the seat panel. This is because no mechanism is provided for positively holding the leg opening cover in the upright covering position.
Often, shoppers will open the seating compartment for the storage of merchandise therein, but fail to ensure that the seat flap is raised against the leg openings before placing merchandise in the seat area. There is thus a danger of items falling from the cart through the uncovered leg openings with the result that fragile items may break upon falling to the floor. This obviously results in wasted product, shopper embarrassment and inconvenience, and personnel disruption for the required clean-up. There is thus a need for a collapsible child seat assembly for a cart which better ensures that a leg opening cover thereof will (1) be in its upright covering position when the seat back is moved forward to open the seating compartment for the storage of merchandise, and (2) remain in that position until it is intentionally lowered.